Photos: Pelicans vs. Nets | Game Action 1/2/24
1 / 55NEW ORLEANS, LA - JANUARY 2: Zion Williamson #1 of the New Orleans Pelicans handles the ball during the game against the Brooklyn Nets on January 2, 2024 at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Layne Murdoch Jr./NBAE via Getty Images)
A holiday-season New Orleans homestand began with two defeats in the kind of gut-wrenching fashion only a Grinch could love. It ended with the Pelicans holding a New Year’s Eve party with the Lakers as guests, then celebrating a blowout win over Brooklyn. New Orleans rolled to a 16-3 first-quarter lead in Tuesday’s interconference matchup and never looked back, going up 59-34 by halftime and later expanding the margin to 30-plus. The Pelicans finished 3-2 on one of their longest homestands of the 2023-24 campaign. Next up is a Wednesday game at Minnesota, the Western Conference's No. 1 team record-wise.
THREE POINTS
Three-point repeat.
New Orleans turned in a second straight red-hot game from the perimeter, following up 17 made three-pointers against the Lakers with a 10/20 first half. The Pelicans cooled a bit after intermission, but their early accuracy (30 points on threes) nearly matched how much the Nets scored total over the first 24 minutes (34 points). A couple late trifectas resulted in the hosts finishing 16/39 from beyond the arc vs. Brooklyn.
CJ out of the starting block.
For a second straight game, CJ McCollum’s three-point marksmanship helped New Orleans take an early upper hand on the scoreboard and get the Smoothie King Center crowd involved immediately via a binge of deep buckets. “He’s shooting the ball at a really high level,” Jose Alvarado said of the veteran guard. “He’s hoopin’ right now. He’s out there flat-out hooping. I don’t know what his workout is, but he needs to continue (it).” McCollum led seven Pelicans players in double-digit scoring with 16 points, featuring 4/8 three-point gunning.
Minneapolis back-to-back.
As was the case for the Lakers on the weekend, the Pelicans will play a back-to-back Wednesday that features a two-hour-plus flight along the Mississippi River between the cities of New Orleans and Minneapolis. The Pelicans have not played games on consecutive nights in just over a month (Dec. 1-2 vs. San Antonio, at Chicago). New Orleans is 1-3 in the second game of back-to-backs this season, with all three losses coming on the road. Tuesday was ideal for the Pelicans in that none of their starters needed to play heavy minutes, with the outcome decided prior to the fourth quarter. Rookie reserve Jordan Hawkins' 26:06 of action was a team high (Zion Williamson topped the starters at 25:38).
BY THE NUMBERS
28.3: Brooklyn shooting percentage from the field in the first half. The Pelicans also limited the Nets to only two foul shots.
58: Brooklyn point total through three quarters, a score that looked more like it was from the NBA of the early 2000s.
10: New Orleans steals. Herb Jones and three reserves posted two apiece.
#PELSPOTWPOLL
Aside from three one-possession defeats between Dec. 19 and 26, it’s been an excellent stretch for New Orleans since the conclusion of the In-Season Tournament with an 8-3 mark, including a 2-1 record in Week 10 (wins over Utah and the Lakers; one-point loss vs. Memphis). Brandon Ingram was voted by fans as Player of the Week for the seven-day period after delivering some of his best two-way play of the season. Ingram averaged 25.3 points, 2.3 steals and 2.7 blocks over the three home contests against West opponents. Previous winners: Week 1: Zion Williamson; Week 2: CJ McCollum; Week 3: None; Week 4: Herb Jones; Week 5: Brandon Ingram; Week 6: Zion Williamson; Week 7: None; Week 8: Jonas Valanciunas; Week 9: None.